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With the playoffs around the corner, the LA Lakers suddenly look like a team that opponents wouldn’t mind facing! Head Coach JJ Redick seemed fully aware of the growing perception surrounding his injury-riddled side. Rather than dismissing the noise, he pointed out how certain teams have begun making calculated moves with the postseason picture in mind. It only hinted at the teams’ broader approach taking shape in the West.
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The Lakers’ dominant March rhythm abruptly took a hit overnight when Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves suffered injuries that sidelined them indefinitely. With the margin of error shrinking, the situation turned on its head, and the opponents began preying on the playoff matchup against the Lakers. Aware of the perceptions, Redick addressed the press ahead of Friday night’s matchup against the Phoenix Suns. There, he hinted at a visible pattern among West teams: benching their starting lineup.
“I’m sure everyone wants to play us, let’s get that out there. Everybody wants to play us. There are probably teams that are in a position where they can start looking forward to potential second-round matchups as well,” said JJ Redick. In the current standings, the fourth-seeded Lakers are set to face the 5th-seeded Houston Rockets, a pairing likely to hold even if positions shift slightly. If the H-Town wins, they play the winner of the OKC Thunder and the 8th-seeding team, a scenario ultimately giving weight to Redick’s remark on the tactic.
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JJ Redick knows everyone wants to play the Lakers in the playoffs.
“Clearly there’s some teams that are… I’m sure everyone wants to play us, let’s get that out there. Everybody wants to play us. There’s probably teams that are in position where they can start looking forward…
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) April 11, 2026
“We’ve seen some of those teams rest their entire lineup basically,” continued Redick. That pattern surfaced Friday night when both the Thunder and the Denver Nuggets sat their regular starters, signaling priority on postseason positioning over individual game result. With playoff paths becoming clearer, such decisions reduce injury risk while quietly shaping potential matchups down the line.
In the case of the Nuggets, the standing allowed them a pathway to slide below the third seed, a slip that would guarantee them a Lakers matchup in the first round. However, despite rolling out an irregular starting lineup against OKC, Denver didn’t drift; instead, it produced a blowout 127-107 win. The result made it difficult to interpret the move as an intentional side, even with the chance to set up a Lakers matchup.
Nevertheless, amidst the perception battles, Redick remained optimistic, as he said, “We have to figure out the formula and the belief for this group to be successful. So that’s our focus for tonight, and that’s gonna be our focus on Sunday.”
Nuggets’ coach squashes JJ Redick’s remarks
When asked about the decision to roll out a different lineup, Nuggets coach David Adelman had an interesting answer. “I’ll be honest, there’s so much unknown. I think people need to calm down with ‘Let’s play the Lakers. ‘ If Luka comes back and feels good, do you want to play Luka Doncic? Like, I think you’re messing with the game when you think that.” He speculated on the true details of Doncic’s injury timeline. So, tanking to fix a matchup against the Lakers could end up costing the teams.
That response added a layer of doubt to JJ Redick’s earlier suggestion about the team’s planning. The Nuggets, who had the room to slip below the third seed, remained competitive and won the matchup. Anyway, with just one matchup, one cannot rule out Redick’s statement.
This isn’t the first time NBA teams have been accused of strategically resting players or subtly adjusting lineups to influence playoff seeding in pursuit of a more favorable matchup. In fact, concerns like the one raised by JJ Redick reflect a pattern that has surfaced repeatedly over the years.
One of the clearest historical examples dates back to the 2005–06 season, when the Los Angeles Clippers were widely rumored to have tanked their final regular-season games against the Memphis Grizzlies. At the time, the playoff format guaranteed division winners a top-three seed regardless of overall record, creating an unusual incentive structure.
As a result, the stakes of that late-season matchup extended beyond a simple win or loss. The loser would fall to the No. 6 seed and face the Denver Nuggets— a solid but less intimidating opponent, while the winner would move up to the No. 5 seed and take on the 60-win Dallas Mavericks.
In the end, the Clippers ultimately “lost” the positioning battle and drew Denver, a matchup many observers considered far more manageable.
A few years later, similar suspicions emerged around the 2011 Memphis Grizzlies. This time, the team was accused of dropping games late in the season to secure the No. 8 seed, thereby setting up a first-round series against the San Antonio Spurs instead of facing a different, potentially tougher higher seed. While such claims are difficult to prove, the pattern they suggest is hard to ignore.
On the other hand, the Lakers coach showed optimism about finding a formula to survive this season. Their path forward depends solely on LeBron James’s leadership, his playoff experience and his supporting cast, playing to their strengths.
Written by
Edited by
Tanay Sahai